{{An Association of Young Rwandans living in Geneva,Switizerland are working on a project known as ‘Upright Men’ in collaboration with IBUKA in preparation of the forthcoming 20th commemoration of the genocide against ethnic Tutsi’s in Rwanda.

IGIHE Reporter Aimable Karirima was recently in Geneva where he met with members of Swiss based association where they discussed various issues.

Below are excerpts of the entire conversation.}}

IGIHE: {{Tell us about this Project}}

RWA association: ‘Upright Men’ is an artistic project coming from a long reflection by the visual artist Bruce Clarke, a British artist and activist of South African parents trained in the field of anti-apartheid struggle, deeply involved in various projects in Rwanda including the “Garden of Memory ” which is underway in Kigali.

This project aims to honour the genocide victims with dignity and sensitise people about the events of 1994; and create a bridge between the survivors and the rest of the world.

By using art in the form of paintings of women, children and men standing upright, larger than life; it gives a strong and beautiful image of Rwandan people and allows them to go through a phase of rebuilding that informs us that survivors remain standing and worthy despite of all they have endured.

The project also intends to give an international dimension to the act of remembering needed after a genocide, which, by definition, concerns all of humanity.

In Rwanda, by painting men, women and children standing, on the outside of memorial places (churches, schools, town halls, hospitals), we wish to represent symbols of nobility of those who have disappeared but whom we remember standing with dignity.

The massacre memorial sites will be marked, by these beautiful and dignified images so that nobody can forget.

At the international level, the international community must also honour the victims, salute the survivors and must never forget the meaning of genocide.

On April 7, 2014, day of remembrance but also the international day of genocides, people will simultaneously stand upright on different symbolic places (Place des Nations in Geneva, Neumünster Abbey in Luxembourg, the Cathedral of Lausanne, Brussels, Paris, etc…) through light projections and giant printed canvases.

The more places around the world will respond to the call of upright men, the stronger the message will be. These projections will commemorate not only our lost ones but also send a strong and unified message to other affected communities.

The involvement of the Rwandan people is essential in this project because, above all, this project is for us, Rwandans.

This is the reason why, the project is in partnership with IBUKA (France, Belgium and Switzerland) and the Association RWA (association of young Rwandans of Switzerland) and most importantly is supported by several Rwandans individually.

Furthermore, the main project patron is Gaël Faye, a young Franco-Rwandan artist who is a big success at the moment.

IGIHE: {{How do you intend to create awareness on the project in Rwanda and elsewhere in the world?}}

RWA association: In order to create awareness to a wider audience, we invited the public to photograph themselves, standing, in a dignified manner with the words “I’m standing upright”, in solidarity with the victims of genocide and other crimes against humanity.

These pictures are posted on different social networks, and will be used to create a larger image of an upright man or woman, consisting of a multitude of photos, which will serve as a poster to advertise the various events on April 7, 2014.

We will spread the message worldwide to all who feel concerned with the memories and dignity of victims of genocide.

For more information, here’s the video of the launch of the Action Photo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I69WdP0Kwdw (Aperçu)

The campaign was also well received in Rwanda and elsewhere in the world. Since the beginning of the photo action, we received pictures of men, women and children from around the world.

We want our fellow citizens to understand the beauty and scope of the message and continue to take pictures and send them before 31 December 2013; they can share their photos at me@uprightmen.org

IGIHE: {{As Rwandan, how does this project inspire you?}}

RWA association: We were children during the genocide; therefore this project is a tool for us not only for remembering our lost ones with dignity, but also to create awareness of this tragic episode of our history. We see this project as a message of solidarity to every Rwandan and in particular, to the survivors and victims of the genocide.

Moreover, this project is also a way of fighting against genocide denial, reminding the world that genocide had indeed taken place. For example, the fact that paintings will be placed in front of the Palais des Nations in Geneva from April 1 to June 1, 2014 will send a very powerful message and symbolic significance of the role played by the United Nations during the genocide.

This project affects us. Bruce Clarke’s approach is delicate and beautiful. We want all Rwanda people to feel like upright women, children and men.

IGIHE: {{What do you think of the idea of using art to raise awareness about the genocide?}}

RWA association: Bruce Clarke often reminds us that “It is in the art that historical events are recorded in the popular consciousness.” We particularly believe that his paintings easily talk to everyone. This is importantly a way to make our history accessible.

Since the end of the genocide, the art illustrations have repeatedly been a tool used to raise awareness about the Rwandan genocide. To illustrate that, the Groupov (which also works with Upright Men) created a play about the genocide entitled RWANDA 94.

The other example is the collective “Rwanda: writing for the duty of memory”, saw ten African writers write books on various aspects of the genocide that allowed the general public to understand. Upright men project is therefore in the same process.

We believed the project to be able to help everyone to feel involved and affected by history of Rwanda, for the crime of crimes that is genocide.

We invite you to discover our action by watching the video and by sending us your pictures!